A storied UT tradition returns on Friday with the annual Homecoming Parade, as part of Homecoming Week. The parade begins at 4 p.m. at The Rock and ends back at The Rock.
Lineups will be on Pat Head Summit Street and Johnny Majors Drive. From Pat Head Summit Street, the parade route will turn onto Volunteer Boulevard, said Connie Richardson, senior in microbiology and student worker in the Office of Student Activities. Passing in front of Circle Park, the route turns right onto Peyton Manning Pass to head toward Neyland Stadium. The route turns right again onto Phillip Fulmer Way and wraps around in front of Thompson-Boling Arena.
Pat Head Summit Street will close between Chamique Holdsclaw Drive and Volunteer Boulevard for the parade, she said. Volunteer Boulevard will close, going east, from Pat Head Summit Street to Peyton Manning Pass, which is closed completely. Phillip Fulmer Way to Thompson-Boling Arena will also be closed.
"The parade really is bringing it all together," Kerri Lovegrove, student activities program adviser, said. "The student organizations that are competing during the week through Homecoming will be displaying their floats."
Richardson said UT President John Petersen, Interim Chancellor Jan Simek and several UT dignitaries would attend the parade. The Pride of the Southland Band and the UT cheerleaders would also be on hand.
The five UT student-athletes who participated in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing will serve as grand marshalls.
After the parade, a pep rally will take place at Thompson-Boling Arena. The finals of Smokey’s Howl, a spirit competition, will follow the pep rally.
The preliminary round of Smokey’s Howl was held on Wednesday at Thompson-Boling Arena, with 18 groups conducting two-minute performances involving cheerleading, dancing or skits. The round narrowed the field down to seven groups, who will compete in the finals.
"It's not your typical cheerleading competition," Richardson said. "Every organization is given two minutes to perform. Creativity and spirit actually get the most points and then technicalities, such as stunting and tumbling and cheering and how in sync the groups are, also a part of the points."
Along with the parade, Smokey's Howl is weighted with more point value for the Homecoming Week competition between participating student organizations.
"A lot of it (Smokey's Howl) is based on humor and theme, making sure it pertains to Homecoming and who we are playing," Richardson said. "A lot of times, groups often try to tie in their organization during their performance. The main thing is spirit and execution."
Other events involved in the Homecoming Week competition included window displays, lawn-and-lobby displays, three-on-three basketball, soapbox derby, banners and anything goes. Anything goes, Richardson said, was four or five events of camp-like games.
"Most of the competitions are judged by either UT faculty or people from the Knoxville community, who are experienced in the competition they are judging," Richardson said. "... The main basis is judges cannot have any affiliation with any student organization, like being a past member or having a son or daughter in the organization."
The winner of Smokey's Howl and the winner of the Homecoming Week competition will be announced at halftime of Saturday's Homecoming football game between Tennessee and the University of Wyoming. Miss Homecoming will be announced at halftime of Friday's men's basketball game, and she will be crowned at halftime of Saturday's football game.
Lovegrove said she thought the Homecoming Parade continues as a tradition because of university-wide participation.
"I think the reason it is a great tradition is because it brings together students and alum to campus in one weekend to celebrate our university,"€ she said. "There are many different events that are planned throughout the event, not just through All Campus Events."